Bowling alley bumper with hanger means



Oct. 6, 1953 A. B. HACKERT BOWLING ALLEY BUMPER WITH HANGER MEANS Filed March 13,

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A F I INVENTOR. ALBERT B. HACKERT.

ATTOQMEYS Patented Oct. 6, 1953 BOWLING ALLEY BUMPER WITH HANGER MEANS Albert B. Hackert, St. Paul, Minn.

Application March 13, 1951, Serial No. 215,265

4 Claims.

This invention relates to bowling alley bumpers or backstops, and more particularly to hanger means for suspendingly supporting same.

Bumpers or backstops for use in bowling to stop balls propelled toward the pins sought to be knocked down comprise a rectangular wooden frame, a rigid backing covering the back face of the frame and forming with the latter an open recess, a flexible cover extending over the front face of the frame and covering the open recess and secured to the frame, and a filler of padding material such as scraps of leather or the like interposed in the open recess and in back of the flexible cover. The top rail of the frame is usually provided with a pair of spaced eye members which project upwardly from the top rail and which are supported in the latter rail. In some instances, the eye members are threaded onto the upper ends of a pair of spaced rods which extend through both the top and bottom rails of the frame and are supported in said rails. The eye members receive the hooks depending from a supporting surface adjacent the bowling alley, and so, the bumpers or stops are dependingly carried solely by the eye members. Due to the fact that the eye members are carried by either the top rail or by the projecting ends of the spaced rods which are supported in both the top and bottom rails of the bumper or backstop frame, the constant striking or pounding of the propelled balls against the flexible cover face of the bumper or backstop causes severe strains and stresses to be exerted upon the frame which strains and stresses in due time result in weakening of the joints of the bumper or stop frame to such an extent as to permit the discharge through the weakened joints of the finely divided powder formed by the battering forces of the propelled bowling balls against the filler con tained in the bumper or stop.

An object of the present invention is to provide a hanger means which will serve to suspendingly support a bowling alley bumper or backstop in a manner to resist the weakening of its frame during long periods of use in bowling.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a hanger means which will serve to suspendingly support a bowling alley bumper or backstop and which will enable the bumper or backstop to endure the constant pounding of the propelled bowling balls without weakening of the bumper frame.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a hanger means which is adapted for ready attachment to the bumper or backstop frame and which is simple in structure and commercially practical.

Other objects and advantages will become apparent from the following description.

An embodiment of the invention is illustrated by way of example in the accompanying drawings wherein Figure 1 is a front elevational view of a bumper or backstop dependingly supported from a supporting surface adjacent a bowling alley, the bumper frame and the hanger means of the present invention being shown in dotted lines.

Figure 2 is an enlarged perspective view, with a part broken away, of the bumper or backstop of Figure 1, taken from the back, and illustratin the hanger means of the present invention applied thereto.

Figure 3 is an enlarged sectional view taken on the line 3--3 of Figure 1.

Figure 4 is a perspective view of one of the supporting brackets forming a part of the hanger means of the present invention.

Referring to the drawings, the numeral It designates a bowling bumper or backstop frame which is rectangular in shape and to the back face of which is secured a rigid backing I l preferably fabricated of plywood, by means of bolts I1, the backing with the frame forming an open recess [2. Extending over the front face of the frame In and covering the recess 12 is a flexible cover l8, the edges of the cover being secured to the adjacent edge portions of the frame It and the backing H. Interposed within the recess [2 and in back of the flexible cover !8 is a filler or padding material l9, such filler or material being scraps of leather or the like.

The hanger means of the present invention comprises a pair of brackets 20 and 2 I, each of which embracingly engage the adjacent portions of the top rail 23 and the bottom rail M of the frame 10, the brackets, as shown in Figures 1 and 3, being spaced from each other and inwardly of the end rails 25 and 26 of the frame it. Since the specific structure of the brackets is the same, the description of only one of such brackets will suflice for a proper understanding of its structure and its attachment to the top and bottom rails 23 and 24 of the frame It.

The bracket 20 comprises a fiat bar 21 of a length to extend from the lower edge of the bottom rail 24 to the upper edge of the top rail 23 of the frame 10, the bar 21 being provided with spaced apertures 28 and 29 which receive the threaded end portions of bolts 30 and 3| carried by the top and bottom rails 23 and 24 respec- 3 tively. The threaded end portion of the bolt 3|] is in threaded engagement with a thin nut I3 which is received in a complemental recess l4 formed in the back face of the backing I I, while the threaded end portion of the bolt 3| is in threaded engagement with a thin nut l5 which is received in another complemental recess 13 also formed in the back face ofv the backing The bar 21 is secured in position on the threaded ends of the bolts 30 and 3| by means of nuts 32' and 33 which are also in threaded engagement, with the bolts 30 and 3| and bear against the adjacent portions of the bar 21. Projecting from the lower edge of the bar 21 is a leg 34 and projecting from the upper edge of the bar 2 is a second leg 35, the legs 34 and 35 bearing against the top and bottom rails 23 and 24. Arranged longitudinally of the bar 21 adjacent the free end of the leg 35 and secured thereto is an eye member 36 which receives the book 31 dependingly carried by the supporting surface 38'. The bracket 2| likewise has an eye member 39 which receives the other hook 40 likewise dependingly carried by the supporting surface 38;

If desired, the hanger means of thepresent invention may also include a reinforcing member or bar 4|, the reinforcing member being arranged intermediate and in parallel spaced-relation with respect to the pair of brackets 28 and 2| and secured to the'top and bottom rails 23 and 24 by means of screws 42 and 43-.

By reference to-Figure 2, it will be seen that the top rail 23 has two bolts 3| which are equally spaced from each other and from the end rails 25 and 26, and thatthe bottom rail 24 has two bolts 30 which are likewise equally spaced from each other and from the end rails- 25 and 26. In other words, the two bolts 3| arein alignment with the two bolts 30, enabling the reversal of the brackets and 2|.

Having thus described the invention, what is new and desired to be secured by LettersPatent l. The combination with abowling alley bumper comprising a rectangular wooden frame,- a rigid backing covering the back face of the frame and forming with the latter an'open recess, a flexible cover extending over: the front face of the frame and covering the open recess and secured to the frame, and a filler of padding material interposed in the open recess and in, back of the flexible cover, of a hanger means, for suspendingly supporting said bumper, saidmeanscomprising a pair of' spaced brackets arranged exteriorly and transversely of said backing and embracingly engaging said frame and fixedly secured to the latter, and an eye member projecting from the end of each of said bracketsadjacent the top of said frame for receiving a hook carried by a supporting surface;

2. The combination with a bowling alleybumper comprising a rectangular wooden frame,

a rigid backing covering the back face of the frame and forming with the'latter an open recess; a flexible cover extending over the-front face of the frame and covering'theopen-recess' andse-- cured to the frame, and afiller of padding ma-- terial interposed in theopen recess and in back of the flexible cover, of a hanger'mea-ns for suspendingly supporting said bumper, saidmeans-= comprising a pair of spaced brackets-arrangedexteriorly and transversely of said backing and embracingly engaging said frame and fixedly secured to the latter, an eye member projecting from the end of each of said brackets adjacent the top of said frame for receiving a hook carried by a supporting surface, and a reinforcing bar arranged intermediate and in parallel spaced relation with respect to said brackets and secured to saidframe.

3. The combination with a bowling alley bumper comprising a rectangular wooden frame, a rigid backing covering the back face of the frame and forming with the latter an open recess, a flexible cover extending over the front face of 'the' frame and covering the open recess and secured to the frame, and a filler of padding material interposed in the open recess and in back of the fi'exiblecover; of a hanger means for suspendingly supporting said bumper, said means comprising a pair of spaced brackets arranged exteriorly and transversely of said backing and embracingly engaging said frame and fixedly secured to the latter, each of said brackets comprising a flat bar of a length to extend from the lower edge of the bottom of said frame to the upper edge of the top of said frame, a leg pro-- jecting from the lower edge of said bar and bearing against the bottom of said frame, a sec-- integral with the latter for receiving a hook car ried by a supporting surface.

4. The combination with abowling alley bumper comprising a rectangular wooden frame, a rigid backing covering the" back face of the frame and forming with the latter an open recess, a'flexible cover extending over the front face of the frame and covering the open recess and secured to the frame, and a filler of padding material interposed in the open recess in back of the flexible cover, of a hanger means for suspendingly supporting said bumper, said means comprising a pair'of spaced brackets arranged exteriorly and transversely of said backing and embracingly engaging said frame and fixedly secured to the latter, each of said brackets comprising a flat bar of a length to extend from the lower edge of the bottom of said frame to theupper edge of the top of said frame, a leg projecting from the lower edge of said bar'and bear ing against the bottomof said frame, a second leg, projecting from the upper edge of said bar and bearing against the bottom of said frame, an eye member arranged longitudinally of said bar adjacent said second leg and integral with the latter for receiving a hook. carried by a supporting surface, and a reinforcing bar arranged intermediate and in parallel spaced relationwith respect to said bars and-secured to said frame.

ALBERT B; HACKERT.

References Cited'inlthe file of thispat'entl UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,948,223 Luce Feb; 20', 1934 2,092,666 Dietrich Sept. 7; 1937 2,306,825 McGi-ll l Dec. 2.9, 1942 2,472,208 Hackert- June 7', 1949 2,485,'775 Ricci Get. 25',- 1949' 

